Objectives

Objectives

“The People’s Smart Sculpture” (PS2) fosters participative art and collaborative urban art&culture processes in Europe ́s cross-cultural city spaces. It is constituted by 12 project partners in 11 sub- projects in 8 European countries with artists and creatives from 29 European countries. The approach works on two levels: the implementation of cultural participation projects by artists, creatives and researchers and the ongoing optimization of the art and participation aspects in these projects through reflection and evaluation in participation workshops-series in the 8 countries. We will integrate diverse groups of people into a practical dimension of re-design of the urban environment through the workshops. The People’s Smart Sculpture is about social art in European spaces.

Artists, citizens, creatives with a new user’s perception and new skills more and more change cities into places of art, culture and science: into European spaces of a new public.

The People’s Smart Sculpture with the people ́s participation in several sub-projects and its individual interpretation of it are inextricably related to one another. The collaboration between artists and citizens is pioneer of the future integrative culture of social art, social collaboration, digital art, collaborative design, e-decision-making, eGovernance, social inclusion, urban play – sometimes analogous, sometime with new tools on computers, mobile devices, interactive screens or projections. Participation will become a part of the general culture techniques in Europe. To encounter today’s urban complexity means to integrate diverse forms of cultural practice and diverse groups of people. Here we learnabouthow to create places for our own interaction. Social spaces in Europe that grow immensely popular: spaces for art, spaces for knowledge, and spaces for communication. As soon as we enter the sub-projects through our and other people ́s activities, we unavoidably regenerate the urban space. It’s a carousel of influence,participation and anticipation. It expresses the cooperation between everyone involved – participatoryart work inan utopianaesthetic, bringing with it the promise of partaking therein also through production, comments, selection,evaluations and critique. The common activities in our project are inspired by the idea of connecting more purposefully artistic works from local and European artists and creatives with local social dynamics. It is intended to be directly linked to the development of our collective living circumstances, a cultural charrette, play,test-field and art place. In the People’s Smart Sculpture, a project cooperation of artists, creative industries stakeholders, cultural activists, citizens and researchers from all over Europe will work towards realizing this vision: a hybrid open environment where everybody can follow – even change – the ideas concerning collaborative re-design and development of urban art. Right now actual software systems, methods and tools for urban design target more or less only on the relevant administration staff,architects and other professionals. While professionals, for example, are used to work with highly abstract data and visualizations for planning, participating artists, creatives and citizens would require a much more direct access and feedback methodology. The project provides different options for a high diversity of social groups that want to be part of public urban art and space development and cultural city re-design. This remains in the context of the needof a highly sustainable culture development strategy for the future by integrating opinion sharing, cross-cultural social inclusion, distinct communication of ideas, performative communication acts, new cultural expressions and informal learning capacities and will give the best practice examples to others – European-wide.

The project is also the base for a new deal between artists, experts, citizens, learners, creators and the government. It is a performative sort of integrated art to combine social and cultural sustainability in the city. The project will support small groups and areas, but will also work on more complex problems like the transformation of historical areas. On the other hand the proof and evaluation of all participation activities in PS2 will be sustainable through an experimental comparative best practice for participation booklet (also online) that will be disseminated durable after the projects duration and through a public interactive online training tool about participation that especially integrates intercultural and cross-cultural aspects.

Accompanied are these measures by the work packages workshops, art as research studies, symposia and exhibitions. Third parties and associated cultural partners are integrated into the project. Citizens, artists and artistic and cultural organizations interested and/or experienced in the aspects of engaging public participation and audience development in urban processes will network during the full period of the project. In addition to that all partners and involved artists, creatives, etc.will stay in tight exchange of knowledge, debate and showcase best practice and discuss methodologies.

The common goal is a “Smart Sculpture” designed by European artists, creatives and citizens which profits from the interplay of culturally different approaches.